What habits should I break now?

[HopefulVA 2]

I am a little apprehensive about the liquid diet I'll have to start before surgery. I don't have a date for surgery yet, but I was thinking about slowly weening myself off of some foods/drinks BEFORE I have to deal with all liquids. Do you guys have any suggestions for me? What do you think will make things easier later if I work on quitting them now?

[jen120 23]

I was told no carbonation and no gum after surgery. It was really hard to give up my diet coke. But I did. So I would definitely stop those.

Start reducing the amount of carbs you eat now. It will definitely help you when you start the liquids and after surgery which are pretty much all Protein.

Start chewing everything really well. It's good practice for when you get to actually eat food.

Practice not drinking while you eat and 30 minutes after meals. This is something that is very hard for me. I should have done more practice prior to surgery.

Good Luck!

[HopefulVA 2]

I was told no carbonation and no gum after surgery. It was really hard to give up my diet coke. But I did. So I would definitely stop those.

Start reducing the amount of carbs you eat now. It will definitely help you when you start the liquids and after surgery which are pretty much all Protein.

Start chewing everything really well. It's good practice for when you get to actually eat food.

Practice not drinking while you eat and 30 minutes after meals. This is something that is very hard for me. I should have done more practice prior to surgery.

Good Luck!

OMG I actually groaned about the carbonation, gum, and carb reduction comment....I know it's the right thing to do, but MAN!! I love my coke zero...and I know it's bad for me lol. I've been trying to drink less of it. Thanks for the input!! Very sound advice.

[YngGram 73]

SODA, SWEET TEA, AND LATE NIGHT EATING! Those were my biggies and a started in Nov. after the seminar with surgery in March. I also started eating on smaller plates, and NO seconds. I put on what I thought I should eat and that was it. It helped me bunches.

[MeFirstFinally 2]

I am a little apprehensive about the liquid diet I'll have to start before surgery. I don't have a date for surgery yet, but I was thinking about slowly weening myself off of some foods/drinks BEFORE I have to deal with all liquids. Do you guys have any suggestions for me? What do you think will make things easier later if I work on quitting them now?

I don't know about you, but I need to stop multi-tasking when I eat...no newspapers, no computer, no novels, no household tasks. I cannot remember the last time I concentrated all of my attention on eating a meal. From what I understand about being banded, concentration is required until the new habits of small bites and chew, chew, chew and chew some more become habits.

Congratulations on being pro-active in this process. I am sure you are going to do well.

Robbie

[nikki_att84 4]

im not band yet..but y no gum? what happens if u just had greek food?

[Jonna 4]

The first time you drink a soda, I guarantee you won't ever do it again. I drank Sprite about 4 days after surgery and thought I was going to die, needless to say I haven't touched anything with carbonation since. I haven't had my first fill yet, and know once I do I won't be able to eat nearly the things I do now like salad, cucumbers, etc. If you chew gum and you swallow it by accident, it could cause you lots of problems because it won't be able to go through the opening of the stomach. I have heard that sometimes it requires them to go down and get it out.

Good Luck with your adventure!

[ukgrad89 0]

I can only echo some of the other comments. One thing I would add is to find a Protein drink you like, because you will be drinking it often. I had to experiment. I like Muscle Milk light myself, but I don't want to sound like a paid spokesman. It works for me, you have to find what works for you. As was said, you should get off the carbs in advance. You want to help your surgeon, right? Shrink your liver by reducing/eliminating carbs before surgery. As they say, no soda/beer. I do like to drink on occasion, and I've already decided that once the dust settles after surgery, I'm drinking cranberry and vodka and bloody mary's, and maybe a bourbon and Water. But realize, these are not going to help you lose any weight.

[kittyforet 50]

I agree with all of the comments already mentioned!!

It has been hard for me to give up my daily can of coke and my sugar-free gum, but I don't want to take any chances!!!

My nutritionist also said NO straws!! UGH!!! Without straws I tend to wear my drink on my chest!!! LOL Now I have to get used to small sips and careful not to spill. ( I know some people are allowed to use straws if they bite the end of it first to eliminate the air)

I was told I could TRY a soda, IF I let it go flat first to eliminate the carbonation....well, to me, that sounds HORRIBLE!!! I am very picky about my coke and drinking it flat does not appeal to me! Gross!!! (I have a friend that is banded and has no problems drinking Dr Pepper, but her list of foods she can eat are pretty small....I'd rather be able to eat than drink a soda!)

I use the little Listerine brand of dissolvable breath strips now in place of gum....not as good, but it will help with the funky breath! I like the cinnamon ones. I also have some of the Listerine breath spray but don't use that as much. I've also found that I want to brush my teeth more, especially after the pre-op diet!!

For the Protein, again find a few you REALLY like, as you will probably need them for a while. I'm almost 6 weeks post-op and have one daily to make sure I get all my Protein. I personally like both the vanilla and chocolate flavor powders from The Ideal chocolate Milk Diet. Very tasty (to me anyway!) I printed off a lot of Protein shake recipes and really haven't used any of them....now I just add sugar free flavored Syrup or the little bottles of flavorings to my chocolate or vanilla when I need a change. But mostly I am a chocolate (or vanilla) milk-tasting kind of girl. Plain jane.

You might have to give up bread...I am just now able to start adding toasted THIN bread occasionally to my diet, but don't have much of a fill yet....and I don't want to get back to being Mrs. Bairds white-bread addicted, so I try to avoid it, as I have a feeling with my next fill I might experience more restriction, and then won't be able to handle any bread at all.

Good luck!!! The people on this site give great advice and are always willing to share what they've experienced!!

[windycitywids 5]

I can drink carbonated beverages with no problems ( I drink them minimally now) and I chew gum almost daily. If I really need a soda (diet Barq's is the bomb) I pour it into a glass first. It cuts down the fizz dramatically and lessons the belching. I never thought about swallowing the gum and having a problem.... I may need to rethink gum all together

[Jachut 487]

I so love to see these posts, rather than the "did you eat everything not nailed down before your surgery" posts! This is the right attitude! You'e made the decision, you may not have had the surgery but you've started your journey and its great to start it on a positive note.

Ok, so you dont have a band yet, dont put the pressure on yourself to eat tiny, or to be that successful at eating slow (that is SO hard!). But what I did was try to eat three meals a day, I wasnt trying to lose weight but I tried to eat three healthy meals a day and stop the binging. I tried to chew well and eat slowly. I started some regular exercise to introduce that habit. I didnt have a carbonation habit so I didnt have to worry about that. But I did wean myself off caffeinated coffee, onto Decaf because I knew that with my post op tiny stomach in those first few weeks, drinking a cup of coffee (aka lifeblood) would fill my stomach and take up the room for something nourishing. I also knew that bad caffeine headaches ensue for me after an anaesthetic when its a day or so before I'm given one, lol.

that was all, I just wanted to be healthy, no heavier and in a place to heal well and quickly - but above all, it made me feel positive and proud of my efforts, a great place from which to start. I didnt to feel that I was a fat pig punished with a life of stomach restriction, I wanted to make myself feel like my banding was one step in a positive journey.

[HopefulVA 2]

WOW you guys!! These are all such great comments!! Thank you for them all. I've been ordering samples of a few Protein powders so I can try some and have already found a couple that I like. I have a list going of things that I can tolerate for when I need to order/ buy stuff pre-op.

I love the Listerine strip idea for those funky breath days! I have problems with gum anyway because it really messes with my jaw muscles, so this is a wonderful substitution that I'll make sure to have on hand. For now, I've been trying not to drink during meal times which is already very difficult for me. I am so used to drinking one or two glasses of Water with each meal to help the food go down (probably because I'm not chewing?!!!) . So, that will be hard for me.

The bread is going to be bad too. I was RAISED on bread. Forget potatoes and other starchy veggies. Sandwiches and just bread in general have always been a huge staple in my diet. I'm going to have to cut down on that too. And on the carbonated drinks.....*sigh* I will probably have to write a farewell ode to the Coke Zero.

This is SOOO helpful you guys! Thank you bunches!